


Hello, Agent 8

by AddisonNoxy



Series: Agents of the New Squidbeak Splatoon [2]
Category: Splatoon
Genre: Gen, I'm not good at tagging things, Octo Expansion DLC Spoilers, T for safety
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-09
Updated: 2020-10-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:48:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26916859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AddisonNoxy/pseuds/AddisonNoxy
Summary: When Marie told Agent 4 that there was a new face joining the Splatoon, she was excited for many reasons. Unfortunately, there were a few details about the new agent that Marie left out.
Series: Agents of the New Squidbeak Splatoon [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1970149
Comments: 3
Kudos: 49





	Hello, Agent 8

When Marie texted her about a new agent that was joining the Splatoon, Agent 4 had been excited for several reasons.

The first was that, since she was currently the newest member by at least two years, she was left out of the loop a lot when it came to operations and planning new patrols. It probably wasn’t meant maliciously - after all, Four had _met_ Marie and Agent 3, and besides that, she knew better than anyone that she wasn’t the best organizer - but even so, Four couldn’t help but feel kind of bummed out when she didn’t hear about a meeting that had been scheduled until she was receiving her orders after the fact. Not that she wanted to go. It was complicated.

The second reason she was excited was because it meant she wouldn’t be the Splatoon rookie anymore. Cuttlefish was a nice old squid but he pretty openly relied more on Agent 3 than Agent 4, even though they had both totally saved the world and beaten up a mechanical squid DJ. Three seemed less concerned with the difference in their time spent on the Splatoon, and mostly treated Four the same as she treated Callie or Marie. The only person she’d seen Three defer to was Cuttlefish. She was getting off track though; it would be nice to have a newbie around who Four could jam with.

The third reason was that _man, she got scheduled for patrols way too much._ Agent 3 was a total madsquid workaholic who had more patrols than meals, but apart from her, Cuttlefish couldn’t do much more than tag along with Three, Callie was still taking it easy after the whole brainwashing thing, and Marie pretty openly treated her active-duty agent days as being behind her. Besides keeping an eye on Tentakeel Outpost and taking the occasional excursion into enemy territory, Marie was mostly mission control. That meant that for any operation that required more than one agent and a super-old squid, or any time Agent 3 remembered that she was allowed to take time off, or whenever Cuttlefish got it into his head that the Octarians were getting ready for round three, Agent 4 had to pick up the slack. Even on days when Agent 3 _was_ on patrol, sometimes Four got sent to a totally different part of Octo Canyon at the same time! And patrols were _long._ Some fresh meat to take the heat off would be amazing.

However, there were a few details that Marie had left out of the message.

When she arrived at Tentakeel Outpost, shaking off the ink from the guide pipe, the rest of the Splatoon was waiting by the cabin - alongside Pearl and Marina, the musical duo that made up Off the Hook. Four was shocked to see them, but as she hesitated by the manhole, Marie waved her over.

“Agent 4, you’ve probably heard of Pearl and Marina.” the idol remarked, gesturing to the pair from under her umbrella. “We brought them here to have a talk about Splatoon business, since they ended up stumbling across Gramps and Agent 3 during an operation.”

Four blinked. Oh, okay. “So they’re not joining the Splatoon?” she asked, returning Marina’s wave and Pearl’s flashy gesture.

“Not at the moment, at least.” Marie confirmed. “There’s a lot we have to consider, and field work might interfere too much with their careers.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Agent 4!” Marina said, beaming as she grabbed and shook the Inkling’s hand. “Marie’s been telling us a lot about you. You’re the one that brought the Great Zapfish back, right? And you saved Callie!”

At Four’s nod, Pearl grinned. “Not bad. Dang, Cap, are all your agents as good as Three and Eight?”

That last word snagged on Four’s mind, and she gave a confused glance towards Captain Cuttlefish, who was opening his mouth to answer. “Agent Eight?” the Inkling cut in.

“She’s the new recruit.” Marie explained, idly turning her umbrella. “Three and Gramps found her around the same time as Pearl and Marina - this was a few days ago. You remember that big light show that happened in the bay?”

Now that she mentioned it, Four _did_ remember hearing about that on the news. Some science squids wigging out about an enormous human relic that popped up in Inkopolis harbor, only to get totally splatted by Off the Hook. A _lot_ of dudes over at the institute had flipped about it. Old squids in labcoats flailing around made for good TV.

Alright, cool, so that huge statue had actually been Splatoon-related, and this new agent helped fix it. Four was up to speed, a bit later than everyone else as usual, but up to speed nonetheless.

“Kind of weird to call her Agent 8, unless there are three other agents I’m missing.” Four said with a smile.

Pearl laughed. “Girl’s got a thing with the number eight.” she said. “You’ll see.”

“Well, where is she?”

Marie pointed with her umbrella towards the bridge that led further into Tentakeel Outpost. “She’s waiting with Agent 3. Go ahead and see her, and call back Agent 3 while you’re at it. We need to talk about Off the Hook’s future involvement with the Splatoon.”

Four nodded, though she sighed inwardly. Another meeting she was going to miss out on because she had to watch the newbie. Well, that was fine - gave her an opportunity to establish herself as a capable agent, get a good rapport going, good first impressions. She’d make it work.

She waved to Pearl and Marina, speeding along the bridge towards the spot that Marie had indicated. Soon after, Four could make out the figure of Agent 3 in the distance, sitting on a crate beside a squid that Four didn’t recognize.

“Hey, Three!” the Inkling cupped her hands as she made her way towards the pair. Three looked up, as did the girl who Four figured was Agent 8, and the girl’s smile froze on her face as she took in the new agent’s appearance.

Black, form-fitting gear. Suction cups on her tendrils. Isolated eye markings. Not a squid. This was an Octoling.

“Good timing, Four.” Agent 3 replied, jumping down from the crate alongside the new girl. As Four drew closer, eying the Octoling, Three gestured between the two of them. “Agent 4, this is Agent 8. Agent 8, meet Agent 4.”

“It is the nice to meet you.” Agent 8 said, reaching out a hand with a frankly amazing smile splitting her face. Hesitantly, Four took her hand and was almost pulled off her feet as the Octoling shook it vigorously. “I am hearing much about Agent 4 who is saving Callie! The Squid Sisters, they are very muchly wonderful! You are having my thanks.”

“Yeah, uh, no prob.” Four answered with an awkward grin, stepping closer to Agent 3 and putting a hand on the other girl’s shoulder. “Hey Three, can I talk to you for a sec?”

“Of course.”

Leaving Eight, who was swaying gently on her feet with her hands clasped behind her back, Agent 4 got twenty paces away and then leaned in closer to Three. “Hey Three. She’s an Octoling.”

Three nodded. “She is.”

Four frowned. “Okay, so I clearly missed a memo somewhere. Am I crazy, or are the Octarians kind of our enemy?”

“The Octarian military, specifically. Agent 8 has defected.”

“Do we have like, an official stamp on that?”

“I’m surprised, Four. Marina has lived in Inkopolis for years, and you’ve never raised these concerns.”

The girl flapped her hands impatiently. “Okay, yeah, but that’s _years_ where Marina hasn’t done anything! You guys made me read her file, I know that she’s clean! Marie told me you guys met this girl a few days ago!”

Three regarded her coworker coolly, shaking her head. “I’ll vouch for Agent 8. She saved my life.” she remarked. “If that isn’t enough, go talk to her. She’s not a threat.”

Four facepalmed, sighing. Well, she was supposed to watch Eight while the rest of the Splatoon chatted anyway, and she was pretty confident in her ability to take down a single Octoling if the girl tried anything funny. “Alright, you win.” she grumbled. “You know me, Three, I’m down for anything. But I feel like a little healthy skepticism isn’t unwarranted here.”

Agent 3 nodded. “By all means.” she remarked, gesturing towards Eight, who seemed to have become occupied with a patch of flowers that were growing nearby. Four looked over the Octoling for a moment, then nodded, raising her hands in mock surrender.

“I’ll chat with her.” she said. “Marie wants you back so you can talk about Off the Hook or something.”

“Thanks, Four.”

With a curt nod, Three turned sharply and started off at a brisk pace towards Cuttlefish Cabin. Four watched her go, gears turning.

She’d never had a conversation with an Octarian before, unless she counted meeting Marina just now. Mostly the octopus dudes had been preoccupied with trying to splat her. This was gonna go one of three ways; great, awkward, or super bad.

Well, no reason to keep her waiting. Four made her way over to Agent 8 as the girl crouched by the flower bed, clearing her throat. “Hey, Eight.”

“Hello, Agent 4!” the Octoling replied brightly, looking up at her. “Are you knowing these plants?”

Four glanced at the flowers. They just seemed like normal yellow flowers to her; plant stuff wasn’t her forte. “Well… they’re flowers.” she said lamely. “You like flowers?”

Eight nodded. “I am liking everything up here.” she said. “You are all having a nice base. The views of the canyon are the freshness.”

Alright, Inkling wasn’t Agent 8’s forte. Good to know. Four scratched her head, wondering what she was even supposed to talk about. Did Octarians know about Inkling music? Turf Wars? Four kind of liked the girl’s outfit, even if all black wasn’t at all her style, but she could probably safely cross ‘fashion’ off the list of Octoling priorities since all the ones she’d met were dressed pretty similarly.

Agent 8 ended up saving her from having to think of a topic. “How long you have been with the Splatoon, Agent 4?” she asked, standing up and brushing off her skirt.

“Oh, few months now.” Four replied. “Five or six maybe. Heard you met Three and the Captain pretty recently, though.”

The Octoling nodded enthusiastically. “Cuttledfish, he is very decent.” Eight said. “Good for company and making the laughter. He raps.”

Four actually didn’t know that last part, and the thought of that twitchy old dude dropping a rhyme made her laugh before she could help herself. Eight beamed at the sight.

“Well, Eight,” Four said hurriedly, adjusting her headphones, “we might as well take a seat, yeah? Don’t need to be standing around while we talk. Let’s go dangle our legs off the platform over there.”

“Boo-yes!”

Another laugh escaped Agent 4; this girl was absolutely sparkling with pride every time she made Four laugh, it almost hurt to look at. Her giant smile and shining eyes didn’t betray an ounce of subtlety; Four knew about fun, and Agent 8 was putting her enjoyment on full display here.

The two of them sat by the platform, Eight eagerly taking in the sights while Four looked on. She had to admit, she was starting to warm up to this girl. At the very least, Eight was way more talkative and upbeat than Marie or Agent 3, much more Four’s speed. That said, she still didn’t totally trust what was going on here - after spending a few days getting splatted over and over by the Octarians in order to rescue Callie, and being assigned patrols by the Splatoon to keep a close eye on their movements since then, she found it a little hard to forget that she’d been tangled in shootouts with Eight’s people pretty dang recently. Maybe Octavio’s forces had just finally found a way to imitate the Inkling concept of fun and were trying it out on the Splatoon.

Her musings were cut off as she realized Eight was humming to herself. The Octoling was rhythmically kicking her feet, shoulders rolling in tune with the beat as she looked out over Octo Canyon with a peaceful look in her eyes. Four recognized that tune - it was the same one that the Squid Sisters had performed while she was kicking the stuffing out of DJ Octavio.

“Is that the… Calamari Inkantation?” she asked, hoping she’d gotten the name right.

“Yes!” Agent 8 replied with a smile, meeting Four’s eyes. “It is wonderful. Cuttledfish is calling it ‘the heavenly melody’.”

“Where’d you hear it?”

“The Squid Sisters were playing it two years ago, when Agent 3 was doing a battle with DJ Octavio. You are all so lucky, to having the music like this. You are liking the Inkantation as well, yes, Agent 4?”

Four shrugged with a smile. “I’m more into Off the Hook, and some of the more obscure stuff.” she replied. “But I know Three will gladly jam out with you to some Squid Sisters.”

“Off the Hook! I am meeting them too, they are a complete packaging.” Eight exclaimed. “Pearl and Marina were the explosive.”

“Do you mean ‘the bomb’?”

“The bomb!”

Watching Eight get lost once again in the Inkantation, Agent 4 felt like she was starting to understand the confidence that Three had expressed in Agent 8. All of the Octolings that Four had met down on the Octarians’ turf had been stoic and steadfast, ruthless in their pursuit of Four and their defense of the zapfish, but Four couldn’t see any of that in Eight’s face. It was like the girl had been touched by something, changed. No matter how much Agent 4 thought about it, only the Calamari Inkantation came to mind.

The heavenly melody, huh.

She felt her ink starting to pump with excitement. This was really cool, actually! Sitting here and having a conversation with an Octoling was something that Four would never have expected of herself; she wondered if there were many others among the Octarians who were as amazingly pure as Eight.

“Well, Eight,” Four said, drawing the girl’s attention back to herself, “we’re gonna be sitting here for a hot minute while the rest of the Splatoon talks, so whaddya want to talk about? Have you been to Inkopolis yet?”

Eight shook her head, eyes gleaming as she said, “I would be the grateful to hear of Inkopolis, Agent 4.”

“You can just call me Four. Or Reyna, but Four when we’re on Splatoon duty, since Three will get her tentacles all twisted if she hears us calling each other by name over the radio.”

Oh, speaking of which… “By the way, what’s your name, Eight?”

For the first time today, Four saw a shadow pass over the Octoling’s face. With a forced smile, Eight pulled back and replied, “I am… not remembering.”

The Inkling girl blinked. “Not remembering?” she repeated. “What, you have amnesia?”

“Maybe. I am not knowing the Inkling word for [].” Agent 8 said, uttering a word that sounded like Octarian. “We can say yes, amnesia. Some things are returning to me, while others are the darker. But my name…”

She shrugged. “It is lost. Oh well!”

Four scrutinized the Octoling, lips pursed. She was pretty good at reading expressions, unless they belonged to brick walls like Three, and that was not an ‘oh well’ look on Agent 8’s face. It didn’t look ‘oh well’ at all.

“Hey, Eight,” Four started, rubbing the back of her neck and leaning in towards the Octoling, “you’re gonna find out really quick that I’m kind of bad with subtlety, and tend to just really get everything out in the open. Is it gonna bother you and stuff if I say things like ‘I don’t believe you’?”

Eight looked silently at Four, the smile fading from her face. It was like a light had flickered and died, like glass had shattered. Four suddenly found herself face-to-face, not with a beaming and excitable rookie, but an Octarian elite who was out of her element. The Inkling girl flinched back, ready to spring to her feet, but Agent 8 made no sudden moves, only turning back to look out over Octo Canyon.

“It is not bothering me.” Eight replied, her voice eerily level. “But I am sorry, Four. I cannot to think I have answers that will be convincing you.”

Four swallowed, forcing herself to relax. “I mean, I can believe that you have amnesia, I guess.” she said slowly. “But you definitely seem to care about having forgotten your name. I can see it in your eyes.”

“Agent 3, also.” the Octoling remarked. “Cuttledfish and Pearl, I do not think so. But Agent 3, and Marina… they are perceptive.”

“And they didn’t ask you about it?”

“No. I am thinking they could sense I was not wanting to discuss it.”

Ouch. Okay, that stung a little.

“Please do not mistaking me, Four.” Eight said, glancing at her with measured eyes. “I am not become angry. Your suspicions and thoughts of me are reasonable. You have battled with the military; I am seeing your duel with DJ Octavio.”

And _that_ was just embarrassing. “You knew I was suspicious?” she asked, heart sinking.

“Of course.” Eight shrugged. “But I can say nothing. I am a stranger to Inklings. I know nothing of how you are living. You laugh and play with each other, and you are smiling on your faces and bump fists. You wear colorful outfits and do not worry each day about blackouts and reassignments from friends.

“But once again, Four. Do not mistaking me. I am wanting us to have friendship. To come to Inkopolis is a dream to me.”

Agent 4 felt like her train of thought had derailed and exploded. Agent 8’s posture, demeanor, language, tone - everything was totally flipped from how she’d been a few minutes ago. Eight met her eyes as she stared, mouth open, and Four could see the same earnest reflection in the Octoling girl’s gaze.

“Why… are you telling me this, if you don’t want to discuss it?” Four asked slowly. “I mean, you seemed so happy up until now. You could’ve kept doing that. Even if you do want to be friends with us, was that just an act?”

“In one way, I think.” Eight answered. She shifted, brow knit in concentration. “But it is not an act that I mean to use for deception. I am wanting everyone to know that I am friendly. Agent 3 and Cuttledfish are strange for Inklings, I am thinking. They are creatures of duty and purpose. I am understanding them better than other Inklings.

“But as you say, you are wanting things in the open. So I answer you. Agent 3 and Cuttledfish, they do not press me. Pearl and Marina, they are living the fun times, and it is strange to me. So I am smiling, to show that everything is fine. I show my excitement for the sky and the music, to let them know I am wanting to share these things. And to you, Four, I am serious, so you can be knowing that I am sincere.”

Eight put a hand over her chest, fist clenched lightly. “I am not wanting to scare squid children. I am not wanting to being nervous with the chance I am given. But I am unsure how to enjoy the surface as Inklings are. To other Inklings, I will smile, be excited, so they know I am a friend. But you and I are allies, Four. I am wanting you to know about me so there will be no suspicions, no fear. I will be hoping for your help and guidance.”

Four didn’t know what to say. The Octoling had fallen silent, eyes downcast, and it stung at Four to see how isolated and small Eight looked. Before, when she had been bubbly about things as simple as flowers on the ground, Four had gotten carried away and seen nothing but a simple and enthusiastic new member of the Splatoon. Sure, she was an Octoling, but her cheery demeanor had made it easy to forget that; it was so unlike the Octarians that Four had encountered before.

Now, she was very plainly an outsider, doing her best to appear friendly and optimistic in an environment that was as alien to her as the dreary undersea domes were to Four. Thinking about living in those things sent shivers down Four’s back; was Inkopolis just as unimaginable to Eight? Was she just as uncertain about getting along with Inklings as Four had been to partner up with an Octoling?

The girl took a deep breath, trying to steady herself before she spoke. “So, uh. I guess you do care about your name, then.”

“Of course.” Eight replied, glancing her way. “But it is forgotten. Now, I am having a new name, given to me by new friends, and I like it. Maybe one day, my old name returns to me, but I am without wanting to worry about it.”

Despite herself, Four smiled. “Hey, rolling with the punches.” she remarked. “I like it. That’s how I do things too, Eight.”

She sidled closer towards the Octoling. “Like I said, I’m no good at subtlety and feelings and junk. But I can tell you’re a cool person.” Four said, looking Eight in the eyes. “I appreciate the sad speech you just gave me, even if it was a bit long. Thanks for being honest with me.”

“Then… we are chilled?” the Octoling ventured, a smile returning to her face.

“Shell yeah we are!” Four cheered. “Don’t worry about a thing, Eight, I’ll teach you all about having fun! I mean, Three’s not gonna do it - that squid forgot how to _spell_ fun a long time ago. Gotta make sure you don’t turn out as boring as her.”

Eight laughed, and the sight of it warmed Four’s heart.

The two of them were soon chatting animatedly, Four telling Eight about her favorite places to hang out in Inkopolis and the freshest stores to shop for clothes. The Octoling listened, enraptured, grinning and asking questions about things like milkshakes and dance clubs. Four found that Eight was less than willing to discuss the events that had led to her meeting the Splatoon and Off the Hook, but she quickly waved away the girl’s awkward attempts to explain why; she didn’t need Eight’s full backstory, at least not right after Eight had just finished telling Four how off-balance she felt. Someday, Eight might tell her. It was enough for now to know that the enjoyment on the octopus’s face was sincere.

And when Agent 3 returned from the meeting to retrieve them, Four pulled the two of them in for a group selfie, laughing with Eight at the contrast between their shining smiles and Three’s disgruntled expression. As they walked back towards Cuttlefish Cabin, Four slid the picture into a new folder on her phone, along with a caption.

_Check out the new rookie - Agent 8! Isn’t she a gem? Looking forward to hanging out with you, Eight!_


End file.
